Film reel drive mechanism



Dc. 17, 1940. M. E. coLLNs FILM REEL DRIVE MEHANISM Filed March 30, 1937 :Summer //////////flf ir&

Patented Dec. I' l, 1940 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE FILM REEL mvn MECHANISM Millord E. collins, Bollywood, Calif., assignor to Radio Corporation ot America, a corporation o! Delaware Application March 30, 1937, Serial No. 133366 3 Ciaims. (CL zie-45) This invention reiates to improved flim reei Other and incidental objects of my invention drive mechanisms such as are utilized in conwill be apparent to those skilled in the art from nection with motion picture cameras or sound a reading of the following specification and an recorders. V inspection of .the accompanying drawing, in 5 In sound recorders and motion picture camwhich:

eras, it is customary to utilize a magazine en- Figure 1 shows my improved take-up drive 'as closing two fllm reels. Unexposed film is wo'and applied to a commercial type of sound-on-fllm on one oi these reels and is ied through aper recorder, this figure showing a rear view of the tures in the magazine into theapparatus and recorder,

io then back to the other reei. It is necessary to Figurez shows the rear view oi the take-up drive the second reel in order to take up the drive with the cover partly broken away,

film, and this drive has heretorore been cus- Figura 3 is a section taken on the line 3--3 of tomarily accompished by means of a' belt which Fig., 2, and was siipped over a puliey on the reel shaft. such Figure 4 is a rear` view of the pin clutch which an arrangement presente the disadvantage that engages the magazine puliey. 15 a certain amount of time is required to remove Fig. 5 is a view similar to that oi Fig. 4 showthe belt when removing the magazine, and to ing the pin clutch retracted. replace 'the belt on the fresh magazine. This Reierring first to Fig. 1 which shows a comis particularly disadvantageous in sound recordmercial type ot sound-on-fllm recorder, the reing, where the rear o! the sound recorder. where corder base io carries the driving motor il, which 20 the take-up belt is located, 'is not always readdrives the film drum flywheei [2 through approily accessible and where occasionaiiy magazines priate gearing I: and such other intermediate must be changed very rapidly. irregularity absorbing connections as may be The present invention involves a mechanism appropriate, such, ioexample, as the magnetic 2 which may be; substituted tor the customary drive shown in Kellogg Reissue Patent No. 19,270. drive belt, and which permits magazines to be The unexposed mm is carried in the right changed without any appreciabie delay and withhand side of the magazine ll, and the exposed out any loss oi t'ime in disconnecting or connectfilm is taken up at 'the left hand side thereof, ing beits. I acomplish this result .by the enthe film passing !rom the right hand side into gagement o! the apertures in the customary therecorder casing !5 through the bottom of 30 take-up puliey on the film magazine, instead ot the magazine, and then `passing upwardly from engaging the periphery thereot. This device is the casing I! into the leit hand side of the ma provided with a depressible pin which does not azine. Both reel shaits are provided with pulinterfere with the removal or replacement o! the leys. as indicated at s, the one on the 'left hand magazine. and 'which is automatically caused to side of the device being partly obscured by my 35 engage an appropriate aperture upon the starttake-up drive mechanism IT. It will be apparing ot the recorder. siip oi the take-up drive ent that these pulleys have circular holes 16' in to accommodate varying quantities of film on them, uniiormly spaced near the periphery, and the reel, and corresponding variations in reei my device drives the take-up reel by engaging 40 speed, is provided by a spring-controlled iriction one of these holes instead of by means oi' a belt 40 clutch, instead oi depending upon the siip of a engaging the grooved periphery. belt. The take-up device I'l itself is driven by the One object of my invention is to provide a usual belt !8 !rom a puliey on the recorder mechtake-up drive mechanism which-facilitates exanism. This belt passes over a pulley s on changing film magazines. V the take-up drive and drives the shait 20 through 45 Another object of my invention is to provide the clutch plates 2| and 22 and the triction a take-up drive mechanism which is more posidiscs 23. The discs 23 may be of any appropriate tive in its operation than a belt drive. material, such as felt or leather, and serve to pro- Another object of my invention is to provide vide proper frictional engagement between the a drive mechanism which will be caused to pospuliey IS and the stationary plate 2I and slid- 50 itiveiy engage the magazine puliey upon the able plate 22. The plate 22, with its accompastarting of the apparatus. nying friction disc, is pressed against the pulley Another object of my invention is to provide s by the spring 24. and the puliey s is therea drive mechanism including a retractabie drivby pressed toward the clutch plate z. u ing pin !or engaging the magazine puliey. An appropriate adJusting nut 25 is provided i'or adiusting the pressure oi the spring 24, and thereby adjusting the torque applied to the shait 20. This shatt carries a sprocket 28 which drives a second sprocket 21, through a silent chain 28. The sprocket 21 is mounted on a shait ZI, which is so positioned in the casing ll o! the device as to be im alignment with the shaft oi the magazine take-up reel 30, which carries the pulley il.

This shait !I carries on its face adjacent the pulley ll a driving disc OI. which is fixed to the shai't !I and carries a driving pin 32 adapted to engage one o! the holes in the pulley il and pressed toward the pulley il and into the appropriate hole by means oi' a spring 33.

From the preceding explanation, it will be apparert that I have provided a compact and eflicient take-up drive having an appropriate triction clutch and a positive engagement with the take-up pulley. However, in order to facilitate exchanging magazines. it is necessary that the driving pin 32 be retractable !rom ensagement with the pulley, and that it be automatically brought into engagement with the pulley when the device is started. In order to do this, I provide a lever 34, which is pressed toward the pin 32' by a spring 35 and which is cut away at the end 38 in order that it may slip under the head 32' of the pin 32 when the pin is pressed into the driving disc SI.

After a film magazine has been removed, the pin 32 is pressed into the disc Il and retained there by the lever 34 which slips under the pin head 32' and retains it in such a position as to free it irom engagenent 'with the pulley il. In order to cause the pin 32 to engage the pulley i It upon starting of the device, a stationary cam 31 is provided on the shaft 20, and is fixed to the casing i'l by a screw u.

When the magazine is in place, and the device properly threaded and started, as the shai't 29 rotates with the driving disc Il, the heel shown on the lever u engages the projecting portion of the cam Il and is thereby withdrawn !rom beneath the head 32' oi the driving pin 32, permitting the spring :I to force the driving pin toward the disc pulley i., and into the appropriate hole by which it is to be driven.

It is not necessary that the pin I! be manually pressed into the disc Il after the removal oi the magazine. as when a fresh magazine is placed in position, it the pin 32 does not happen to be in alignment with one o! the holes in the pulley IS, the race of the pulley will depress the pin, after which the pin will be caused to &224 899 engage the pulley on the starting of the device, as above described.

The depression o! the pin 32, whether accomplished manually or by the pulley li, leaves the take-up reel free to rotate to iacilitate festen ing o! the film or the taking up oi excess film while threading. and the releasing o! the pin by the cam 31 thereatter connects the pin to the pulley li on the starting of the recorder.

It will be apparent that my invention is not limited to the specific details shown and described, but that I may substitute other appropriate equivalents. such, tor example, as a gear train ior the chain 28. or other appropriate retaining and releasing means i'or the lever u.

Having now described my invention, I claim:

1. Apparatus oi the class described comprising a driving disc member, an apertured driven member, depressible pin means carrled by said driving disc member !or engaging the apertures in said driven member, means yieldably urging said pin means toward said driven member, means attached to said drive member and adapted to rotate therewith i'or retaining said pin means in a retracted position, resilient means tor urging said retaining means toward said pin means, and stationary cam means adapted to contact and thereby release said pin means from the retracted position upon actuation of the drive member.

2. An automatic device for connecting a driving member with a driven member comprising a driving disc member, a driven member having 'apertures therein, a depressible pin mounted on said driving disc and adapted to be inserted in the apertures of said driven member, said pin being normally urged toward said apertures, a lever pivoted on said driving disc member and resiliently urged to'ward said pin, said lever maintaining said pin out of said apertures in oneposition of said pin, and means movable relative to said driving disc member for urging said leve' away from said pin.

3. An automatic device for driving a film takeup reel comprising a driving disc member concentrically mounted with respect to said takeup reel, a pin adapted to pass through said drivment with said reel apertures, and stationary.

means adapted to remove said pin Contacting member from said pin upon rotation of said driving disc member to permit said pin to engage said apertures.

MILFORD E. COLLmS. 

